Crossroads of Destiny
by Team-megan
Summary: Kataangst. K  Katara's thoughts between The Crossroads of Destiny and The Awakening. Part 1 uploaded April 14th.
1. The Beginning

Nighttime had always been her favorite time of the day. The cool breeze and quiet serenity of the darkness always made the day seem better.

On the beach where her father and the other men of her tribe were camped, she sat in the cool sand, trying to enjoy the sound of the waves washing lazily up on the moonlit sand.

Trying to keep to her mind off what had happened the day before.

_Lightning. _

_Then the sickening realization of watching her best friend fall. _

She turned her head away from the moon, barely containing a shuddering sob. It wasn't fair.

None of this was fair.

She hadn't even attempted to clean herself up after the fight. After they arrived here.

Her father had looked at her like he was seeing a ghost.

She didn't blame him. There was blood everywhere. Her water tribe clothes were stained crimson with her best friend's life force. The edges of her sleeves and skirt were burned and fraying from the fire blasts that she had narrowly escaped. Her hair was a tangled mess, partly from the fight, partly from the wind whipping through it as they had sped here as fast as they could.

She looked down at her arms and hands and realized bluntly that they too were covered in dried blood. Her stomach lurched suddenly and she was overcome with a sudden need to be cleared of the dark substance. Without thinking, she walked straight into the water she had been watching.

The salty waves rolled against her, but the high tide was calmer than the daytime swells. It wasn't enough to clear her of this horrible memory.

So she waded in deeper and bent a larger wave over herself. The temporary silence of the water was a blessing. Her mind had been running a mile a minute since they'd gotten to Chameleon Bay.

When she was satisfied that the blood was washed away, she walked back to shore and bent the remaining water out of her hair and clothes. The salt was still there, burning in the small cuts she hadn't noticed until now. She ignored the irritating sting and turned to look back at the campsite. Two of her father's men were standing guard, leaning lazily on their spears.

She sighed as her eyes followed the tents and fire burning low in the center of the beach. A dim light from a lantern shone through the main tent her father was in.

The one where Aang lay under a dark blue blanket, covered in white bandages and breathing slowly.

It suddenly became difficult to breathe as she pictured him there. She needed escape, somewhere to run to. Someone who wouldn't ask her if she was alright and send concerned glances her way.

On the far end of the beach, sleeping next to the beached ships, lay Appa. The air bison was laying on his side, his gigantic belly rising and falling in his sleep.

Katara watched her friend's animal companion roll over onto his stomach and groan in his sleep. She shook her head and began walking towards him. Over the past couple of months, she'd grown closer to Aang, and in turn, closer to the young avatar's bison.

She approached the great beast, careful to not wake him. But Appa sensed her coming and one of his eyes opened as she got closer. He heaved a great sigh, his huge head settling into the sand. Katara knew how he felt. She was going through the same thing.

She finally reached out and ran her hand through the fur over his eye, which closed with her contact.

"Hey, Appa."

The sky bison rumbled a sad reply. The air around him vibrating with it. Katara buried her face in his fur, hugging him awkwardly.

She breathed in the earthy smell and bit her lip, trying to clear her mind. Appa shifted in response and pressed his head against her. The tears that she had worked so hard to contain finally rolled down her face. Appa made a low sound in the back of his throat, rumbling against her in comfort and sorrow. She buried her face in the warm soft fur and sobbed her heart out.

Images of Aang , lifeless in her arms, came flashing back. Cutting her deeper every time.

"I-I almost lost him Appa…" she managed between sobs. The aching returned in her heart sfrom that moment- those awful seconds where she'd watched the glow from the spirit water fade and had felt her breath catch when there was no reply- that same anguish ripped through her chest now as she clung to Appa.

Appa rumbled again in reply, the sound of it mournful and low.

"_We_ almost lost him…" she corrected, running her hand through the thick fur. Appa's breath scattered the sand around his nose. Katara shut her eyes to the moonlight. Yue couldn't help her now. She was so lost, and tired… and Aang wasn't waking up any time soon.

When she'd asked Toph to help her carry Aang off of Appa when they arrived, she'd been numb to the questioning stares from her father, Bato, and the other men of her tribe. They recognized her, and the unconscious boy in her arms, whose head lay tucked under her chin, instinctively curled against her in his sleep.

Her father had made a move to help her when her strength had faltered as she'd stepped off the earthen platform, but he was met with cold eyes.

Anger...

and a hurt so deep it reminded him of the day he'd lost his wife. The expression on his 8 year old daughter 's face mirrored 6 years later.

Katara was angry with her father. Angry that so many people in her life kept leaving her. Terrified that she'd lose Aang and what remained of her family. But mostly angry that no one was there to help her when she'd needed them the most.

So she'd taken it out on her dad and barely registered the surprised looks on Bato and Sokka's faces. She ignored them and let Bato lead her to the main tent, where one of the men skilled in healing helped her clean the Avatar up.

When she was sure Aang was stable after countless hours, she'd walked out to the shoreline, barely aware that her brother was explaining everything to their father just meters away at the campfire.

That's where she'd started. Staring out at the ocean, her element.

And now the only person who could comfort her wasn't even human.

Appa settled into the sand as she dropped to her knees, her hands still gripping tufts of fur above his eyes. The great sky bison nudged her with the side of his head, trying in his own way to reach out to her.

"I know, Appa. He'll be fine. He has to be," she assured, her voice cracking from disuse and emotion.

Appa sighed in reply and she released her grip on his fur, her hands wiping at her tired eyes.

Momo appeared over the side of the saddle and chattered questioningly. Appa groaned in reply and Momo flew down, landing in the young water tribe girl's lap. The lemur's ears drooped as she'd sadly smiled at him, scratching his favorite spot behind his ears.

He curled up against her and she sighed, leaning her forehead onto the side of Appa's head.

It always seemed that the two animal companions of their group were the best listeners. Sokka had said once that he thought they knew exactly what humans were saying and could read emotions better than humans themselves. She agreed with him now.

She wanted to be close to Appa, because of the connection between the bison and Aang. That little bit of stability and reassurance was comfort enough.

She yawned suddenly, realizing that she'd spent the whole night awake. She glanced back over at the campsite and realized the guard had already changed for the early morning shift. She sighed and gently picked up the sleeping lemur from her lap, placing him on Appa's forearm, where he curled up into a fuzzy ball.

She ran her hand over Appa's fur again as the bison stared at her. She smiled despondently at him in response and walked back to the camp. The guard closest to where she had been nodded at her, which she returned tiredly.

The light from inside the main tent had long since burned out, so she relied on the moonlight to guide her into the place where the sleeping Avatar lay on his side, propped up to keep the lightning wound on his back aired out.

A slit in the fabric of the tent allowed some light to shine through and disperse, illuminating her young friend in a soft light. She swallowed painfully and approached him. She was relieved to see his chest still moving under the blanket.

A bead of sweat trickled down his forehead into the pillow below. She kneeled and reached for a cloth, dipping it into the bowl of water beside the mat. Katara wiped it gently over Aang's forehead, trying to cool him down. The Avatar mumbled in his sleep, his eyelids squeezed shut as his eyebrows furrowed together in pain.

The waterbender's breath caught in her throat. She hated seeing him like this. It was far worse than when he'd slipped into the Avatar State in the desert. At least she could comfort him there. Now, she had to only hope her efforts keeping him stable and in minimal pain were working.

She moved to the other side of the mat and unwrapped the bandage on the wound in his back. The severity of the burn made her feel sick. She bent a stream of water out of the bowl and placed it on the wound, covering her hands and the lightning wound in a blue light.

Aang groaned loudly and her heart stopped again.

"-tara."

She pulled her hands away, releasing the water from her control. It soaked into the mat, ignored. Katara gently flipped him over on his back, placing some larger bandages under him. He groaned again.

"Shh, Aang it's ok. It's me. It's Katara."

He moaned loudly, trying to move, obviously in pain. Katara placed her hands on his shoulders, keeping him still, preventing him from reopening the burn on his grabbed the wet cloth from earlier, wiping his face, which was twisted in pain again. Tears trailed down her face, unnoticed by the concerned waterbender.

Aang suddenly tensed up, his back arching in pain. He cried out in pain, and Katara fought to keep him from hurting himself.

When he calmed, Katara covered her hands in water, running them over his torso, searching for the source of his pain.

"K-k….ara"

She looked up at his face to find his eyes cracked open slightly. He had a glazed look in his eyes, like he wasn't completely there. She smiled sadly, "Hey Aang."

"….t hurts," he mumbled, "where…we…" He was slipping back into unconsciousness. His body shutting down from the pain. She worked harder to find the problem, but he slipped back into sleep despite her efforts. She sighed.

She finished trying to heal him, rewrapped the bandages, and tossed the dirtied water out the front flap of the tent quietly. Then returned to Aang's side and watched him sleep.

He'd at least responded to her. So that was good. He had to be exhausted.

_She _was exhausted, but that didn't matter. She'd stay up with him forever if need be. She'd do anything for him. He was her best friend.

Almost losing him shook her to the core.

She couldn't deny loved him, and there was no way she was going to live without him now.

He was her everything.

An orange glow started lighting up the tent slowly. So, she was probably going to regret staying up all night with Aang, but at least she'd made sure he was ok.

Her eyes fought with her, begging her to sleep, but she managed to stay awake, watching Aang as the light grew brighter and the noise started from the warriors around her waking up.

She was interrupted from her thoughts by Bato walking into the room, with an armful of blue cloth. He was startled to see her.

"Oh, Katara. I didn't know you were in here. Sorry." He laid the cloth down by the entrance and turned to walk out, sending her a concerned look over his shoulder. She ignored it and curled her arms around her knees.

Sokka was the next one to enter the room, not much later. He had a bowl in one hand and a water skin in the other. His hair was out of its normal ponytail and dark circles marked under his eyes. He hadn't gotten any sleep either apparently. The look of concern on his face mirrored Bato's.

He set the bowl and water skin down beside Aang and sat down, cross-legged, facing Katara. He sighed loudly and held out the water skin to her. She took it and nodded, thanking him before taking a drink.

The siblings sat in silence. Sokka watched his sister as she looked at Aang. She looked worse than he did. Her hair was wild and her eyes were bloodshot from lack of sleep and crying too much.

"Katara…"

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	2. Sokka

The siblings sat in silence. Sokka watched his sister as she looked at Aang. She looked worse than he did. Her hair was wild and her eyes were bloodshot from lack of sleep and crying too much.

"Katara…"

She looked up at her brother. He wasn't meeting her gaze, but instead looking at Aang.

"Tell me what happened down there."

Her breath caught in her throat; she wasn't ready to talk yet. Not when it was still this painful.

She was unaware that her brother was now looking at her, awaiting an answer. She swallowed painfully, tearing her eyes away from the young Avatar's sleeping form.

Sokka shifted, getting on his knees, and for a second Katara thought he was leaving. That is until a pair of arms pulled her close. She registered the sudden warmth was her brother and she wrapped her arms around his torso, burying her face in his chest.

He squeezed her tighter and deep down she was surprised at his actions. Sokka wasn't the comforting type.

She inhaled the familiar scent of campfire and the musky outdoors smell of her brother. She had to admit that it was nice to have his support, despite his usually annoying behavior.

He hadn't questioned her when she'd risen out of the entrance to the catacombs. He'd just taken charge and called Appa to them. She appreciated his help the past two days. The waterbender at least owed him for keeping their father away during this painful ordeal. She knew he didn't understand her anger with their dad, but at least he was being empathetic about it.

He was rubbing his hand in circles around her back, stepping out of his comfort zone to try to help her. She squeezed him tighter before letting go and pulling herself out of his embrace.

He looked at her inquisitively, still expecting an answer to his earlier question. The waterbender sniffed and wiped at her eyes, trying to compose herself.

"We were ambushed," she explained, remembering the turn of events clearly, "Azula and the Dai Lee surrounded us and separated Aang and I. Zuko…"

The name was bitter in her mouth. The traitor. He was responsible for all of this. He'd turned his back on them, just for his so-called 'honor',

"Zuko joined them and Aang had to go into the Avatar State. I thought he was going to win, Sokka…" 

She looked up at her brother, her vision blurred by tears. He looked back at her, his face solemn and consoling.

"But then… Azula… shot lightning at Aang. And he fell. I didn't know what to do, but the next thing I know I was holding him and Azula and Zuko were closing in."

She wiped angrily at her eyes, inwardly cursing the Fire Nation siblings. They were a family of monsters… all except for Iroh…

"Then, their uncle stepped between them and me… he turned against his family…"

Sokka nodded, "General Iroh helped us find you. He's a good man."

Katara smiled slightly, nodding in agreement and pushing her hair out of her eyes. "I guess that's it then, that's all that happened. I got Aang to the surface and met up with you guys."

Sokka sat there in silence. The sun was up now, filtering through the blue cloth of the tent. Most of the men were awake and Toph could be heard grumbling at one of the tribesmen who had tripped on her earth tent.

The two siblings were oblivious to their surroundings.

"Do you- do you think Aang… died?"

The sudden question startled Katara. She hadn't considered it. She'd been too absorbed in saving her best friend to think of the severity of the situation.

Had Aang been dead?

And what would that mean? Would he still be the same?

The question seemed silly to her. Of course Aang would still be [i]Aang[/i]. He had woken up and smiled at her in a way that only [i]he[/i] could.

"I don't know if he really [i]died[/i], Sokka. I don't think it matters. He's alive now, isn't he?" She looked up at her brother in desperation, her expression pleading with him to drop the subject. She wasn't giving up on the Avatar, and talk like this wasn't going to help their situation.

Sokka nodded in agreement and for a moment, she thought the conversation was over.

The older boy shifted in his spot on the floor, speaking again, "I know, but… what if he's not…the Avatar…anymore? Gran used to say that when the Avatar died, the next Avatar was born. Do you think that since Aang was…gone, that he may have lost his Avatar Spirit?"

The question made Katara glare at her brother.

"Sokka! How could you… it's not even…the Spirits wouldn't do that!" She refused to give up hope. Typical, stubborn as ever.

Sokka cringed at her outburst, "Okay, okay. I was just considering all the options we had. We have to think about that now. If he doesn't wake up-"

"He'll wake up."

Sokka shook his head at his sister's confidence. "Katara…"

She turned on him, her voice low,"[i]Sokka[/i]. Aang. will. wake. up. I know it. Why can't you just be positive for once?"

Sokka stood, fed up with where the conversation was going. His blood was boiling. Katara never considered all the options, she always thought with her heart instead of her head. It was frustrating.

"I [i]was[/i] positive, Katara," he hissed, "And look where it got us. Aang is in a coma, Katara, a [i]coma[/i]! He can't fight the Fire Lord in a coma, let alone learn firebending! We have to come up with another plan and soon, before the Fire Nation finds us here and wipes us out. At least I'm thinking of the future, instead of moping around because my boyfriend won't wake up!"

The words were enough. The water tribe warrior could see the damage they'd done as soon as they'd left his mouth. His sister had stood during their fight, and now she was shaking with rage.

He'd said the wrong thing and now he was going to pay for it.

He turned his head, looking down at the ground, preparing himself for her outburst. But when it didn't come, he turned.

She had turned her back to him and had dropped to her knees. Her shoulders hunched forward in defeat.

He made a move to touch her, but the sound of a shuddering sob ripping from her throat stopped him.

He pulled back his hand, but her sobs continued. The sound broken and haunting. Sokka sighed and dropped to his knees beside his sister, wrapping his arms around her shoulders.

Her sobs didn't cease as he tried to comfort her.

"Sokka, I can't… I can't do this. I don't even know how to bring him back…" her voice was hoarse between sobs.

Sokka sighed and pulled her closer as she cried.

"Shh, you can bring him back. I… I'm sorry. I'm just scared and tired. Okay?" He tried coaxing her out of her misery. If she kept this up, she'd waste away to nothing, and he couldn't let her do that to herself. Her sobs subsided, but she kept her hold on him, exhaustion setting in.

"I love him."

The confession startled both of them. But Sokka wasn't surprised. He had seen the signs; every glance she'd sent towards the Airbender when she thought no one was looking, the many times he'd caught them waterbending at night together, that time in the desert- where'd she'd stayed with Aang when he was in the Avatar State. The signs were there, he'd just been waiting to find the two teens making out in secrecy.

But he knew better, Katara and Aang were complicated, his sister more so. She'd bottle up her emotions when she thought they weren't important, until she'd break, like she was doing now.

"I know," was his answer.

She pulled away, wiping her eyes, a small smile on her lips.

"Funny, I thought you'd be a little more angry about that."

Sokka shrugged.

She smiled wider, but only for a moment, as her eyes came to rest on the comatose boy on the mat beside her. Sokka watched a thousand emotions flicker across her face as her eyes wandered the bandages and bruises on the young Avatar's body.

"I love him so much it hurts," she whispered, her eyebrows furrowing in deep emotion.

Sokka stood, "Well, I won't tell Dad if you don't," he smiled, trying to loosen up the mood. She shook her head, rolling her eyes at her brother. He offered her a hand.

She looked up at him, stubbornly refusing to move.

"Come on, you need a bath and food. You smell worse than Toph," he joked. She glared at him. He refused to move, "Aang will be fine, Katara. Seriously, you need to take care of yourself. He'll still be here when you're done."

The waterbender sighed and took her brother's hand, letting him pull her up. He smiled and gently guided her out of the tent.

Bato regarded the two of them quietly, meeting Sokka's gaze. The younger water tribe warrior smiled and led his sister to the campfire. Hakoda joined Bato at the tent's entrance, watching his children interact with the strange blind girl and his men.

"They're so grown up, Bato," he said, watching as Sokka handed his sister a bowl of rice, which she happily accepted.

"War does that, my friend," Bato replied, clapping his hand on Hakoda's back and leaving him standing there.

The water tribe chieftain smiled briefly at his friend, before turning back to watch his kids laugh at something their little pet flying lemur did.

At least they still acted like kids, though.


	3. Toph

**Don't ask where I got this healer dude's name, I'll just tell you now I didn't make it up. I was watching Discovery Channel last night and there was a Human Planet documentary on about the arctic. This Inuit guy's was name Mamuk "BlahBlahBlahBlah" idk his last name. He was catching birds with a net on a long pole and I thought his name sounded Water Tribe-ish. Oh my, Team Megan is really tired today. :P Enjoy the next chapter. I'm on a roll today. XDDD**

Toph sat beside her unconscious friend. She could feel him breathing and his heart beating out a quiet, but steady rhythm. From what she could tell, he was pretty banged up.

Sugar Queen had been up all night every night for days. Toph had to admit she'd done a pretty good job, the young Avatar's energy felt much stronger than when they'd first arrived in Chameleon Bay. The blind earthbender had been scared they were going to lose Aang at first. His heartbeat had been slow and off-beat for the first couple of days.

Those had been the hardest days. The Earth King and his bear had kept quiet and mostly to themselves during that time. The former ruler seemed awfully happy to be out of Ba Sing Se. Toph didn't blame him. The multi-walled city was a prison, with rules just begging to be broken.

Toph turned her attention back to the sleeping boy in front of her. His breathing was erratic and his heartbeat was steadily increasing. The airbender groaned loudly in pain. Toph jumped up and ran out of the tent, frantic. _Where was Katara?_

The men around her watched in confusion as she ran through the camp.

The twelve-year-old used her earthbending vision to single out her friend, who was sitting with her older brother and some guy they called Bato. Toph sensed Katara's heart jumping as she approached. The waterbender stood quickly.

"Katara, it's Aang! Something's wrong," Toph informed, already turning to go. She felt the water tribe girl follow her; hot on her heals as they ran back to the main tent.

Katara practically shoved one of the tribesmen out of her way as she hurried into the separate section of the tent. Toph followed in case she was needed. She felt Katara kneel quickly and recognized the sound of the water vibrating with healing energy.

Toph focused in on the young airbender's vibrations. His heart beat was erratic, his lungs making a strange noise.

"Toph, tell me what you hear!" the older girl commanded shortly, her voice tense and desperate.

The blind earthbender took a second just to be sure of what she was feeling through the earth.

"His heart's going crazy, but not at a steady beat. It's like he's having a seizure or something," she explained. She heard Katara muttering under her breath. Something about 'shock' and 'infection'.

"Go get Mamuk," the waterbender demanded suddenly.

_Who the heck was that?_ Toph wondered. Katara sighed at the younger girl's hesitation.

"The healer," she explained.

Toph was off then. She located said man and grabbed his arm, exclaiming, "Katara needs you," before dragging the poor stunned man into the tent.

She entered the little room again, standing by in case Katara barked out any more orders. The older man was filled in quickly and Toph recognized the sound of the healing energy growing stronger. She figured he must be helping Katara heal Aang.

After what seemed like hours, the sound died away and Aang's heartbeat was normal again. Toph sighed, the adrenaline wearing off from the ordeal.

The healer, Mamuk, stood and left the two friends alone in the room.

There was silence once again, only broken by the sound of the three people in the room breathing. Toph could feel Katara running her hands over the young airbender, lost in her thoughts.

It was getting to be too much anymore. Every other day, Katara would have to rush to Aang's aid and stablilize him, pulling him back from the death that threatened his weakened state. It was exhausting on everyone to have to deal with these ordeals so often and in such a small span of time. Katara never slept. So in turn, Sokka and Toph wouldn't sleep. It was taking a lot out of the three teens.

And yesterday when a Fire Nation ship had been spotted on the horizon, the camp had fallen into chaos. Boats were hidden, and Toph was ordered to bend a wall between the camp and the sea for a temporary hide-out. The scare of discovery by their enemy threw the camp into war-zone mode. Guards were changed more frequently. Weapons were sharpened and drills ran monotonously. The waterbenders who'd joined Sokka and Katara's dad's group practiced endlessly. But Katara never joined them.

She'd sat in the tent beside Aang, or gone off by herself for hours on end, worrying everyone.

Toph couldn't blame her. Twinkletoes being in the state that he was put a lot of responsibility on the waterbender's shoulders. She was the only skilled healer besides Mamuk in the camp. So her health was essential.

and it seems to be too much at the moment.

Toph was brought back to reality by the sound of Katara crying.

_Oh, shi-,_ Toph thought, _not again…_

The earthbender sighed and kneeled beside her friend, grabbing her arm and standing, pulling the confused waterbender up with her.

"Come on, you need a break," Toph explained, dragging a protesting Katara along.

They reached a small lake that laid further inland. Toph bent up a column to sit on and gestured at the water. She could feel Katara tense up, confused.

"Go at it," Toph commanded, "You're the waterbender, not me, Sweetness."

She heard the waterbender sigh, "I don't want to right now, Toph. I don't have the ene-"

She was interrupted by Toph's finger poking her in the chest, "You _do_ have the energy. I know you're angry. So quit moping around and take it out on something!"

Toph could feel the surprise emanating off of the girl in waves, mixed with the raw emotion buried beneath her skin. To Toph's surprise, _she_ was the target as a wave crashed around her, soaking her clothes and pulling her hair out of its bun.

"So that's how it's going to be?" She challenged, taking a horse stance. She felt Katara shift into a waterbending stance.

They fought for hours, Katara taking all of her anger out on the younger girl, who in turn, used all of her built up energy to counter it. By the time they were done, the whole area was a mess, earth pushed up everywhere and the pond surface a foot lower.

Katara stood with her hands on her knees, panting, her hair out of the ponytail she'd put it in that morning. Toph stood leaned against an earth pillar, smirking, her dark bangs drenched and in her sightless eyes.

The two girls burst out laughing. Katara from the sight of Toph, and Toph from the hilarity of the situation. The waterbender helped Toph dry off, bending the water out of her clothes and hair.

Toph punched her in the bicep as thanks and they headed back to camp.

"Thanks, Toph," Katara said quietly, when they were almost back.

The earthbender nodded, "Anytime. Everyone was getting too mopey and uptight around here. And that stupid king and his bear were getting on my nerves. It was nice to have some fun and practice."

Katara nodded in agreement.

They were met by Sokka, who ran up and started yelling, "WHERE THE HECK WERE YOU TWO!" Katara sighed and pushed past her brother, who's voice cracked as he exclaimed, "I had to deal with that bear all day long. And Toph it was your turn-"

His rant was cut short by an earth spike to his backside.

That night, Katara sat across from her father at the campfire. She still refused to speak to him. Even after he'd tried talking to her. It wasn't going to work. Her anger with him was still boiling in her veins. Two years without him was long enough to fuel a grudge she'd held since he'd abandoned them.

It was his duty, he had claimed, to go off and help fight in the war.

Just like Aang had claimed it was his duty to finish the war. So her father wouldn't have to.

It was all one big, vicious cycle. And she was sick of it. She longed for peace. Where she wouldn't have to worry if her best friend was going to die, or her father, or her brother.

Peace where she'd be able to be herself for once. To not fight anymore. Or get hurt over and over. If only there was that peace now.

But it was selfish and foolish to run away from where they were at now. To try and avoid it all. Here she was, with the only hope for this war, wishing there wasn't a war.

She sighed and stood up. It had been two hours since she'd last checked on Aang. her father shot her a concerned look, which she ignored as she started towards the main tent. When she reached the young Avatar's side, she kneeled and coated her hands in water, the familiar hum filling the silence of the night. The glow provided extra light in the dark room.

She ran her hands over her best friend's body, searching out the wounds instinctively. His chi paths were mostly clear, minus the large knot of energy centered in the gruesome lightning wound. She hadn't had any luck fixing that yet.

She finished and bent the water back into the pot beside her. Her hand went to the top of the airbender's head, stroking over the dark hair forming there. It was longer now and she wondered if Aang would keep it once he woke up. He'd be even more handsome in her opinion, then.

She knew it was a futile hope, the young monk would shave the soft fluff off as soon as he saw it. His sense of duty to his heritage taking over. Maybe she'd convince him she liked it enough for him to keep it temporarily. She smiled in the darkness.

A light ruffle caught her attention and she was aware that someone was standing behind her.

Her father's voice broke the silence, "How's he doing?"

She closed her eyes, keeping her back turned, "He's fine, Dad."

She heard her dad shuffle in place, uncomfortable in the silence.

"Katara, did I do something wrong? Is that why you aren't speaking to me?"

The longing in his voice from him wanting to understand her anger was almost enough for her to give in and jump up into his arms. But she was stubborn. Like she always had been. She bit back tears.

"I don't want to talk about it, Dad."

She heard him sigh heavily in the dark, "Fine then. I'll leave you alone with the Avatar."

He turned to leave, but her voice stopped him.

"_Aang_. His name is Aang."

Hakoda nodded and left without a sound, leaving her with her thoughts and her unconscious friend. The sound of cricket-cicadas and badgerfrogs outside was the only noise in the camp.

She was completely worn out from the fight with Toph earlier. Sleeping sounded pretty good, but the blanket she'd been given was scratchy and smelled weird. She rubbed her eyes, trying to fight the sleep that was imminent.

She sighed and decided it wouldn't kill anyone if she slept in here. At least she'd be close in case of an emergency. Katara grabbed one of the blankets folded in the corner and spread it out on the ground beside Aang. She curled up in the softer material and turned towards the young Avatar.

His chest rose and fell with every breath he took, the covers rising with each movement.

She watched his eyelids flutter in his sleep. She hated saying he was in a coma. He just acted like he was sleeping for a long time. Coma was such a deep word, a depressing way of thinking about the situation. And she refused to let herself get depressed over this again.

She sighed and reached out, gently taking his hand closest to her, picking it up from where it lay on the mat, entwining their fingers. She smiled and let her eyes drift closed.

Tomorrow would be a new day, where they'd have to move the ships and the camp again. So she enjoyed the little amount of quiet time she had.


	4. The Awakening

**PART ONE OF TWO for chapter 4. (Never understood how Katara, a 14 year old from the middle of nowhere, who grew up with a bunch of women and children, somehow kept a comatose Aang alive during those weeks he was out. I'm studying to be a doctor, and naturally curious about such things. Soooo, I looked up nursing care for comatose patients. Let's say that, according to The American Journal of Nursing Volume 54, Aang in a coma had a lot of risks for death and complication. For one, Asphyxia (where he can't breathe due to laying on his back or one side for too long and mucus and throat constriction), waste retention (not going to even comment… how did they even **_**deal**_** with that? Catheters weren't around it seems, and this whole subject probably made for some **_**awkward**_** moments…), bed sores, and sepsis of the many wounds he incurred. So… how in the heck DID she do it?**

**Idk, it's a TV show. They probably learned as they went. But here's my take on some of the less awkward moments of this time. This does take some ideas from The Bridge, the canon comic from the Nickmags. XD so here it is :DDDD)**

Light poured in from the flap in the tent, illuminating her face in its warm gaze. It felt like someone had left a lantern on next to her head, though. Katara sat up, using her hand to block out the sunlight beating down on her. She pushed the blue blanket off of herself and stood, stretching the sleep away. Her hair was a mess, since she'd forgotten to undo it out of its braid last night.

Little stray, rebellious hairs poked her as they stuck out every which way from the now-ruined plaits. The waterbender groaned and knelt to retrieve her brush. But all her fingers met was the pelt on the floor. Surprised, she looked around to find herself in the room Aang had been placed in, but the mat where he'd been laying the night before was empty!

Her heart ceased in her chest as the world became much slower. _Where was he!_

She ran out of the room, searching the larger tent area momentarily, before breaking through the main tent flap. Her heart stopped when she spotted him sitting on a piece of driftwood around the fire. Her father was laughing from something that had been said.

Her heart regained its steady beat once again. Her eyes trailed down her friend's back, from the shiny black hair on his scalp down the blue arrow tattoo, until she reached…

Where was it? The scar! She was in shock. Her healing had worked, the scar was gone. She ran up to young airbender and threw her arms around him, much to his surprise. He laughed, and she could feel it throughout his chest as she held him, the tears running down her face from happiness. He turned to face her so his arms could slip around her, pulling her closer.

The rest of the camp faded away when he pulled back to look at her. His silver eyes pierced hers as he searched her face and his hand reached up and brushed her tears away. His smile, so genuine and full of warmth, made her stomach do back-flips.

She realized he was leaning in, the space between their lips closing. She could feel his breath on her mouth, invitingly cool. She felt her eyes slide shut as she waited in anticipation.

But it never came.

She suddenly became aware of someone shaking her shoulder, and the faint sound of someone saying her name.

The world was blurry and unfocused as she cracked her eyes open. Aang was no longer there, leaning in to kiss her. But the dark blob in front of her materialized into her brother. He was shaking her gently, telling her it was time to get up.

"Katara-"

She grumbled "What Sokka?" she sat up and looked around the tent to find it still dark out. There was noise outside from tents being torn down and people moving. "It's still night time…" she groaned. He pulled her blanket off of her, "I know, but we have to move now before the sun is up. A Fire Nation ship was spotted, so we're going to go hijack it."

She then remembered the plan. They were going to kidnap a ship and hide in disguise. They had destroyed their ships and moved the camp the day before. The Fire Nation Navy would never suspect them, since they thought the Water Tribe had been defeated.

She yawned and grabbed her waterskin from beside her. Laying on the mat was Aang, still bandaged up, but breathing slowly. Her heart ceased up violently. Her dream had been just that, a dream. And her best friend was still unconscious, and in pain.

Sokka pulled on her arm, dragging her out of the tent.

"Wait, what about Aang?"

Her brother didn't even look back, "He'll be fine with the men staying behind. They'll bring him once our part of the plan is done. Come on, we need you."

She allowed herself to be dragged to the canoes, but not without a lingering glance back at the tent. She sighed and climbed in the canoe Sokka was in. Toph chuckled beside her.

"What's so funny?" She snapped at the younger girl.

Toph just shook her head, "You."

Katara glared at her, "Me?"

The earthbender crossed her arms, "Don't pretend you don't know… I heard you mumbling Twinkletoes' name all night."

Katara blushed, turning her head away from the blind girl. The rest of the warriors boarded the canoes as they were pushed off into the ocean. The night sky was darker than normal, the crescent moon providing little light as they moved silently over the waves.

She saw her brother glance up at the moon, before turning his head, his expression hard.

She forgot that what had happened to Yue was still hard for Sokka…

The waterbender swallowed. Both of them now bore the pain of losing someone they love, but she had been lucky… Aang wasn't dead…yet. She shook her head. No, she wouldn't think like that. They would win. He'd make it.

Before long, they were upon the ship as it lazily steamed along in the dark. The orange lights from the windows were the only light on the vessel. The canoes pulled alongside the starboard side and ropes were tossed over the railing, the anchor-like attachments catching on the side.

Their masks were donned and the warriors climbed up onto the ship. The fighting was short and simple. The soldiers didn't even suspect the ambush, some even were sleeping lazily on the deck, unarmed. The crew was rounded up quickly and placed in the on-deck holding chamber. Their complaints and threats could be heard for the rest of the night.

At dawn the remaining men brought the unconscious Avatar and the Earth King and his bear onboard. The men carrying Aang followed Katara to the room she'd claimed for him.

Once the young Avatar was situated on the bed in the middle of the room, the men left Katara to her work. The bandages on her friend needed changed, and his wound cleaned.

She sighed and got to work, propping the airbender up on her shoulder as she unwrapped the white strips of cloth. They were stained red from rubbing against the clotted wounds. The sickly sweet iron smell was less strong than it had been weeks ago before the wounds had started stabilizing.

She reached for the wet cloth hanging in the bowl beside her and gently wiped it over the wound on his shoulder, cleansing away the dried blood. She went over every inch of his torso, cleaning the dirt, sweat, and dried blood off of him. Her fingers brushed over the smooth skin of his back, watching the goosebumps form under her touch. It was oddly calming being this close to him.

Feeling his heartbeat against her shoulder, and his breath warm on her neck. Her heart sped beneath her ribcage and her hands grew sweaty from the emotions in her heart. Aang shivered involuntarily from the cool water, groaning slightly. She reached for the dry towel sitting beside the bowl and ran it over him, drying his back and arms.

She did this slowly, admiring the muscles he'd newly acquired from his training with Toph. His shoulders were more defined under the skin. He wasn't losing too much weight in this state. With the aid of water bending, Katara had been feeding him soup and watered down fruit juices lately. The first time she'd tried this, weeks ago, it had been a disaster… and a pretty scary moment, with the young Avatar's involuntary reaction to the liquids entering his airway.

She'd learned quickly the right way to keep him alive. Mamuk, the healer, had known very little about treating patients in this state, but what he knew of, he took over for Katara. Especially during some more… uncomfortable moments, seeing as the young Avatar needed bathed thoroughly and his body still 'functioned' like a conscious person's. She had to keep an eye on her best friend, going in every two hours or so and turn him on his side so he could breathe.

She'd also learned this the hard way, when Toph had alerted her that 'Twinkletoes wasn't breathing' and had put Katara in panic mode.

When she was finished drying Aang's back, she rewrapped his wounds. Her energy too zapped to heal him tonight. She positioned him on his back so he was comfortable and smoothed his hair over so his arrow showed. The waterbender smiled, leaning in and kissing the center of the blue marking.

She pulled the sheets over him once again, up to his chest and put the candle out, leaving him to his unconscious dreams.

There was grey

Suddenly

Then Blue

At first light…. Faint like a cloud

But then darker and darker, until…

Bright light. And

_Pain._

Harsh and strong. Stealing his breath. His life.

No.

Not this way. I will not go quietly. I can't.

**I. Have. To. Get. Back.**

Then the blue turned to black, enveloping him in silence, so deep and vast. Like the sky.

The ocean. He was _alone._

This was new. No pain, just silence. Alone with no recollection of who he was.

_Where was he?_

Then the blue again. And warmth. But with this change.

The pain. Like a knife. Fire in his soul. Burning through his bones. His veins.

Until,

_Light._

Softer, red. Yellow. Black and gold.

It was blurry. Like the pain in his…. Everywhere.

He groans and his eyes adjust after weeks of disuse. His body responds. Pain, sharp. In his spine. His skull. Everywhere.

The world is clearer, but confusing. _What is this place?_

He looks around to find… fire emblems.

Aang suddenly remembers.

The Fire Nation. They have the red fire emblems on their flags. He's been captured!

He sits up quickly, ignoring the pain shooting through his being. He grabs his staff.

Escape. Find a way out. They can't see him. His limbs are weak, but he moves, using the wall and his glider for support. Then voices pierce the silence, asking about the sudden movement.

And the young Avatar attacks, running for his 13 year old life. His lungs working hard as he moves as fast as he can. But the last step catches his foot. Sending him sprawling.

But then,

"Momo?"


End file.
